Coffee and Calexico for 2nd Avenue

Get ready for a Coffee and Calexico combo on Second Avenue between Fifth Street and Sixth Street. (To be clear, these are separate businesses who are just new neighbors.)

The new outpost for the Calexico chainlet that we've been writing about this past year (here and here) at No. 99 is ready to open. Signs on the front note that the Cal-Mex restaurant is closed for private parties at the moment...



Updated: A reader says that Calexico is now in soft-open mode.

Meanwhile next door, the 787 Coffee shop is coming together... the Coffee signage just arrived (H/T Steven!) ...

UPDATE 7/26: 787 is now open



As reported on July 8, this marks the second 787 outpost for the East Village. The shop, which grows and roasts its coffee in Puerto Rico, arrived on Seventh Street near Avenue A last October.

Chinese Graffiti has not been open lately on Avenue A

Multiple readers have noted that Chinese Graffiti has not been open during announced business hours of late. They were closed the past two weekends.

There isn't any message on the door here at 171 Avenue A about a closure — temporary or permanent. Yelp lists the Asian-American gastropub as closed as does Resy. Chinese Graffiti's phone is not in service and its website is offline. Nothing on its social media properties either.

Chinese Graffiti just opened here between 10th Street and 11th Street on March 8. It drew praise from Gothamist, who noted Chinese Graffiti's more offbeat menu items such as the Pork Belly Cotton Candy.

No. 171 may be ready for doomed restaurant location status. Recent ventures here include Chao Chao, which closed without any notice to patrons in May 2017 after six months in business. Chao Chao evolved from Soothsayer, which opened in January 2016. Soothsayer, from the same operators, also closed without any notice to patrons at the end of September 2016.

And because someone always brings this up... No. 171 was once the home of Rat Cage Records and 171A, the illegal club-turned-rehearsal studio that produced records by Bad Brains and the "Polly Wog Stew" EP by the Beastie Boys.

Pizza Rollio has closed on 9th Street

[Photo by Steven]

Pizza Rollio has closed after 10 months in business, and the space is for rent here at 437 E. Ninth St. between Avenue A and First Avenue. The shop had been dark in recent weeks, and the real-estate signage arrived last week to make it official.

The pizzeria specialized in super-thin, arugula-topped pies served in long strips. The owners operate similar establishments in the Philippines. They also have outposts on West 18th Street and in the Plaza Hotel Food Hall.

This storefront on Ninth Street was previously the longtime home of the salon Crops for Girls.

Previously on EV Grieve:
Pizza Rollio bringing its skinny slices to 9th Street

RIP Paul Krassner

Paul Krassner, who "epitomized a strain of anarchic 1960s activism," per the Times, died yesterday at his home in Desert Hot Springs, Calif. A cause of death was not revealed by his family. He was 87.

The Brooklyn native, the founder The Realist, one of the earliest underground humor magazines, had deep roots in the East Village.

From his obituary in the Times today:

Encouraged by [Lenny] Bruce, Mr. Krassner often took to the stage, delivering comic monologues at nightclubs like the Village Gate. He and his East Village friends also dreamed up pieces of public tomfoolery.

In one, in 1968, a group of 60 hippies chose to turn the tables on tourists streaming into the East Village to gape at its scruffy, longhaired denizens. With cameras dangling from their necks, the hippies hired a Greyhound bus for a sightseeing tour of the tidy middle-class neighborhoods of Queens.

In 1967, Mr. Krassner, [Abbie] Hoffman and friends formed an organization to meld hippies and earnest political types. Mr. Krassner dreamed up the name Youth International Party — Yippie for short.

And from the Associated Press:

An advocate of unmitigated free speech, recreational drug use and personal pornography, Krassner’s books included such titles as “Pot Stories For The Soul” and “Psychedelic Trips for the Mind,” and he claimed to have taken LSD with numerous celebrities, including comedian Groucho Marx, LSD guru Timothy Leary and author Ken Kesey.

Check out a few highlights from his long, active life over at Boing Boing.

Previously on EV Grieve:
Last day for the Yippies at No. 9 — for now

Ruby’s Cafe bringing its Australian vibes to the former Martina space on 11th Street

Ruby's, the popular all-day café with two NYC outposts, will open a new location at 198 E. 11th St. at Third Avenue — in the former Martina space.

There's a Community Board 3 notice on the door now for an upcoming SLA committee meeting (no date has been released for the August meeting). The Australian-inspired Ruby's Cafe is applying for a beer-wine license for the space. (Martina also had a similar license)...



A rep for Ruby's confirmed their arrival here in an email to me, noting: "We can't wait."

Ruby's first opened in 2003 on Mulberry Street between Prince and Spring (they expanded next door in 2014) ... with an additional cafe on Third Avenue between 30th Street and 31st Street arriving in 2016.

Martina opened in August 2017 in this newly created space at 55 Third Ave., aka Eleventh and Third, the 12-floor residential building on the corner. The pizzeria, from Danny Meyer's Union Square Hospitality Group, never caught on, and closed this past March.

Thanks to the anonymous reader who shared the news of the Ruby's CB3 notice!

Nolita Pizza debuts on 2nd Avenue

Nolita Pizza debuted over the weekend at 128 Second Ave. here between Seventh Street and St. Mark's Place.

EVG regular Lola Sáenz shared these photos from Saturday...



We're told that Tony Salihaj (far left), one of the owners here, was also an owner of the well-regarded Bleecker Street Pizza. (He made headlines in September 2015 for creating a papal pizza ahead of the Pope's visit to NYC.)

In an email, Salihaj said that Bleecker Street Pizza was sold, and that he was very happy now to be in the East Village.

Aside from pizza, they offer dishes such as baked ziti and chicken parm and a variety of salads. You can find their website here with more menu items. (The website lists a Kenmare Street location as well.)

Kati Roll Company closed here in April after two-plus years selling Indian street food.

The longtime previous tenant at the address, The Stage, the 35-year-old lunch counter, closed in March 2015. Stage owner Roman Diakun had been involved in an ongoing legal/eviction battle with Icon Realty, who took over as the landlord. (You can read that background here.)

Updated 7/26

The signage has arrived...


[Photo by Steven]

1st sign of the San Loco signage on Avenue C

As a reminder — San Loco is opening soon at 111 Avenue C between Seventh Street and Eighth Street... the San Loco sign is now out front...



We first reported on the news in late April. You can find more background at that post.

As previously noted, the quick-serve Tex-Mex restaurant debuted on Second Avenue in the East Village in 1986. Owners Jill and Kimo Hing recently posted about that first San Loco on Instagram... here's a photo from 1986 at 129 Second Ave. (and next to B&H)...



San Loco would later move across Second Avenue to this spot.

Previously on EV Grieve:
It's official: San Loco is returning to the East Village

San Loco plotting an East Village comeback?

1st of 2 Flamingos Vintage Pound shops has opened in the East Village

The Flamingos Vintage Pound opened this past weekend here at 143 First Ave. between St. Mark's Place and Ninth Street. (Thanks to Steven for the photo!)

In an interesting move, this is the first of two Flamingos outposts to open in the East Village. Another one is coming soon to 11th Street between First Avenue and Second Avenue...



Apparently they are opting for smaller storefronts as opposed to opening in a larger, more expensive space.

These are the latest locations for FVP, which as the name implies, sells vintage clothing by the pound. FVP opened on Stanton Street last summer. The company, now in its 10th year of business, has multiple stores in Europe, as well as in Los Angeles, Houston, Miami and Brooklyn.

Until December 2017, the First Avenue space was home to the bar-restaurant portion of Paquito’s. The quick-serve Mexican restaurant still operates a newly remodeled outpost next door.

Previously on EV Grieve:
Looks like a Flamingos Vintage Pound is coming to 1st Avenue

Bruno Pizza won't be reopening after fire upstairs last November

Last Thanksgiving weekend, an early morning fire broke out in the top-floor apartment at 204 E. 13th St. between Second Avenue and Third Avenue. No injuries were reported in the blaze. (A cause has not been publicly revealed.)

The fire caused extensive water damage to Bruno Pizza on the ground floor. At the time, owner Demian Repucci told me that he was hopeful to get the restaurant up and running again.

Now, nearly eight months later, Repucci has decided that reopening the space wasn't feasible. He shared the news via Instagram earlier this month. Here's part of the message:

It is with a heavy heart that I bring you this news. The plethora of adversity that normally comes with running a restaurant was always made up for with the myriad amazing relationships I developed with you, the restaurant’s friends, neighbors, and pizza lovers. ...

But the water damage to the restaurant that resulted from the fire in the building upstairs has proven to be too much to overcome. After several months trying to figure out how to get the restaurant back on its feet, it seems recovery moved beyond my grasp.

So the difficult decision to close Bruno Pizza had to be made. The writing was on the wall. Or, rather, no longer on the wall (er... window). Thank you to everyone who came in, ate pizza, talked, drank, listened to my crazy stories, ate more pizza, and gave your love and support in spades. I appreciate it so very much.

I’m not sure another restaurant will ever be in my future, but pizza eating certainly will. As well as great conversation. So please do keep in touch.

[Photo from July 1]

Bruno Pizza, which milled its own flour, opened in July 2015. This was the first food establishment for Repucci, a restaurant designer-consultant.

Eater critic Ryan Sutton gave the restaurant's nouveau-Neapolitan pies high marks, with a post headlined "Bruno Is the Best Thing to Happen to Neapolitan Pizza Since Roberta's." Pete Wells at the Times was not so kind, dropping zero stars on the place. Two years after that punishing review (and after Bruno's original chefs left), Repucci offered to return the 0-star review to the Times.

In May 2016, Bruno Pizza won a judgment against a petition of eviction by landlord Steve Croman’s 9300 Realty.

14th St. Candy & Grocery has not been open lately

The 24/7 deli on 14th Street at First Avenue has been closed for the past week.

As you can see, someone plastered pages from the (July 16) Post on the front window and door. Not sure at the moment if this is a permanent closure or temporary renovation.

Signing off with a descriptive 5-star Yelp review of the store from 2011:

I started coming here after the place on the corner burned down..

VERY nice people.. and GOOD PRICES

There is always funny ass shit going on too. Like a lady coming in complaining about pain in her moller [sic], and some dude demanding he be given two free plastic cups...
and the cat, that crosses the street by herself.
And the orange trannys that walk around shamelessly

I once came in and this guy was screaming so loudly,
and i looked over, he was bleeding from his head so bad..

I dont know, but every time i come in its like another drama..
but its so funny.. and the owner handles it well

feels like home now..

Heat Wave Weekend parting shot

Photo by Bobby Williams...

Sunday's parting shot

A scene today from the Tompkins Square Park dog run via Derek Berg...

Week in Grieview

[Jimi Hendrix on 1st Street via @ThePostman]

Posts this past week included...

Book Club — an independent bookstore with cafe — coming to 3rd Street (Monday)

"Wealthy, anonymous individual" buys Boys' Club building; will remain in use for a nonprofit (Wednesday)

Local elected officials urge the DOT to explore bike lane options on Avenues A, B, C and D (Monday)

A visit to Metropolis Vintage on Broadway (Thursday)

Report: Red-tailed chick in Tompkins Square Park died from rodenticide poisoning (Friday)

Scoop: Mikey Likes It back in action on Avenue A (Tuesday)

Gone green: 12th Street bike lane returns (Wednesday)

"Summer and Smoke" at 72 Gallery (Thursday)

Next steps in the plan to rebuild East River Park (Friday)

This week's NY See (Thursday)

Lucy's is on summer break (Tuesday)

The China Star closed for actual renovations (Tuesday)

Reader report: Ticketed by the NYPD for double parking in bike lane during Alternate Side Parking (Tuesday)

Nightmarket is the new name for NuNoodle (Monday)

A bendy thing moment at 11 Avenue C as new development passes the halfway mark (Thursday)

A look at La Plaza's new fence (Wednesday)

Ainsworth eyes former DBGB space on the Bowery; Ruffian team to the Eddy (Monday)

Report: retail portion of Ben Shaoul's luxury condoplex on Houston and Orchard sells for a whopping $88 million (Thursday)

... and, randomly, the view from the top floor of the Loews Village 7 on Third Avenue and 11th Street yesterday ... showing the nearly empty streets below around 5 p.m. ...





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A look at the Tompkins Square Park spray showers

Talked with a few people who didn't realize that Tompkins Square Park even had spray showers... over behind the Park office and along 10th Street ...



Photos from early this morning...

Heat advisory: 'Cat on a Hot Tin Roof' screens Monday night at City Cinemas Village East

City Cinemas Village East is screening "Cat on a Hot Tin Roof" tomorrow (Monday) night as part of its ongoing classic 35mm series.

The cut-n-paste synopsis:

Based on the famous Tennesee Williams play, this absorbing drama and six-time Oscar nominee centers on a wealthy southern family where the family members lust over the fortune of their dying patriarch. Truly a classic masterpiece, this film teases audiences by unravelling layers and layers of secrets through phenomenal writing and spectacular performances from Elizabeth Taylor, Paul Newman and Burl Ives.

The film starts tomorrow (July 22) at 7:30 p.m. The theater is on Second Avenue at 12th Street. Ticket info at this link.

Saturday's parting shot

A snapshot of today's weather on St. Mark's Place this afternoon ... photo(s) by Steven...

Tonight's free screening in Tompkins Square Park

If you're looking for a last-minute idea to spend some time outdoors tonight... the Movies Under the Stars series presents the box-office hit "How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World" on the asphalt in Tompkins Square Park.

The synopsis for the G-rated film: "When Hiccup discovers Toothless isn't the only Night Fury, he must seek "The Hidden World", a secret Dragon Utopia before a hired tyrant named Grimmel finds it first."

The film is set to start at 8 p.m. As of 7, no one had arrived yet for a good seat.

Outdoor cooling centers

Two of the best outdoor spots for a quick blast of cool air...



• Delivery entrance (11th Street side) at the Loews Village 7 on Third Avenue.



• The south-facing side of the Cooper Union building on Sixth Street (as we've mentioned in the past).

Find details on the city's cooling centers here.

Open Garden Day NYC is today

[6th & B Garden via Instagram]

More than a dozen neighborhood community gardens are participating today in Open Garden Day NYC.

From 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. you'll be able to take part in activities such as plant tours, composting and cooking demonstrations.

You can visit the NYC Parks website here for details on participating gardens... or look at this map thing...

The big 'Sick'

Vivian Girls have announced their first record in eight years (and their third overall). An LP titled Memory is due in September. Ahead of that, the trio just released this audio track for a song called "Sick."